Pre-emptive Strike
by Xenos394
Summary: Now EDITED! What if the events of 'The Ultimate Enemy' placed Danny's sanity on a knife-edge? And what if, a couple of months later, some close calls pushed him slightly to far? How might he react? 3 (4) shot story inspired by 'Fight Inside' by Red and 'The Last Night' 'Yours to Hold' by Skillet, not a songfic though. Rated T for self-destructive/suicidal themes. Epilogue added!
1. Inevitability

**Disclaimer: This story was inspired by three songs, ****_Fight Inside_**** by Red and ****_The Last Night_**** and _Yours to Hold, _both by Skillet. I own neither of these two songs or ****_Danny Phantom _****(owned by Nickelodeon, I believe), and I make no claim to them in any way.**

**Any similarity to other fanfics inspired by the same/similar songs is completely unintentional and if you feel I have infringed on your own writing, please alert me immediately and I will edit/remove the story as appropriate.**

**[AN: **

**I've come across a couple of other ****_Danny Phantom_**** fics inspired by ****_The Last Night_**** but they all focused on Sam, so I thought it would be interesting to explore the same themes, but with Danny; a 'what if' scenario where everything just pushed him a little to far. **

**Originally the Dan theme was just another thing that was crushing Danny but with the inspiration of ****_Fight Inside_****, it became the main driving force behind the story.**

**It has been years since I have seen any of the ****_Danny Phantom _****episodes so much of my understanding of the characters is based off other fanfics, so if either Sam or Danny appear to be wildly out of character, then I apologise profusely in advance.**

**EDIT: I've gone through and added some new lines that help link and explain pieces in the story (I hope). I've also made some alterations to grammar, sentence structure and fixed up a couple of spelling mistakes. This has occurred in all three chapters, and in some cases I have added entirely new paragraphs and reworked a few more. Hopefully that should help to improve the general quality of this piece. **

**I also added my own cover and added some small segments to link the image into the story.**

**Equally, I realised that there was in fact a third song that had helped inspire this piece, _Yours to Hold_, also by Skillet and from the same album, Comatose, as _The Last Night_. For what it's worth, I highly recommend the album and the band in general, Red as well.**

**/AN]**

**Pre-emptive Strike:**

"_You don't get it do you? _I_'m still here, I still exist, which means _you_ still turn into _me_!"_

Those words had haunted Danny's sleeps for weeks after his fateful encounter with Dan. The destruction he had wrought and the complete lack of empathy, sympathy, even _humanity_ had been almost too terrible to witness. And the sheer power… that was the most terrifying part, because that power was _inside_ Danny; the Ghostly Wail had proved that beyond a shadow of a doubt.

But he knew why he had turned into Dan in that alternate timeline, the loss of those few individuals he cared deeply about, so he resolved to never let that happen. At first he had flat-out refused to let Sam, Tucker or Jazz help with Ghost fighting in any way, but that plan didn't last long (_no one _can stand in the way of a determined Sam Manson) so he focused on ensuring their safety during a fight by whatever means he could think of.

And it worked; as the weeks went by, the threat of Danny repeating his fall into Dan diminished in his mind until it was little more than a peripheral concern, always at the back of his mind but no longer the all-consuming fear it was at first. At least, until a week ago.

Two things happened in that week that reawakened that fear and brought it back stronger than ever.

The first was an injury Sam sustained during a routine fight with Skulker. A piece of shrapnel from one of his many missiles had nicked her inner thigh. The wound itself was superficial, a band-aid was more than sufficient, but both Danny and Sam knew that it had come dangerously close to slicing into her Femoral Artery; if it had of hit a centimetre to the right and at a slightly flatter trajectory than it did, Sam might have bled out before Danny could finish fighting Skulker, let alone get her to a hospital.

Of course she just brushed away his concerns with an irritated glare and proceeded to shake the Thermos like a maraca all the way back to FentonWorks. But that incident rattled him badly, to think that Sam of all people had been that close to death… he couldn't bear to think of losing her. His quite-a-bit-more-than-a-crush on his best friend was the worst kept secret in Amity Park, which was good because it distracted everyone from his rather more successfully kept one (you know the whole 'Half-Ghost' Town Hero/Public Enemy #1 thing), but it meant that losing her, particularly to any of his many enemies, would be a crushing blow him; he didn't even want to contemplate what he would do if something that terrible happened, although from what he saw of the possible future that Dan had created, he had a pretty good idea.

His surprise and fear didn't stem so much from the fact that she was in danger (it was far from the first time she had been in mortal peril, the Freakshow incident for example), it was the fact that all it would take was a (un?)lucky shot for a tiny piece of otherwise harmless shrapnel to critically injure her or one of his other friends or family. Ecto-blasts, sharp claws, fire-breathing ghost dragons, those were all obvious threats that Danny could see and respond to before any harm befell his friends, but there was simply no way he could protect them from every piece of shrapnel or stray discharge of energy during the mayhem of a fight; and that fact was a painful and terrifying wake-up call for him.

The second incident seemed determined to ram home this sudden realisation.

Tucker's dad had been driving home one day in the rain when the Ute in front of him stopped suddenly. Mr Foley tried to brake but still ended up skidding into the back of the vehicle. No one was injured in the minor accident, but a 4m piece of steel rebar had come loose in the impact and sailed straight through the Foley's car's front windscreen, effectively impaling the passenger seat. If anyone had been in that seat the results would not have been pretty.

Once again, it was a disturbing reminder to Danny that he couldn't protect all of the people he loved all of the time and that there was danger in common, everyday activities; not just fighting ghosts.

It was then that Danny realised just how easy it was for everyone he cared about to be taken away from him despite his best efforts. The Nightmares started again that night.

* * *

Sam was worried about Danny. He had been even more tired than usual the last few days and he was sporting more and more injuries though he claimed there weren't any more ghosts than usual to deal with. This all seemed to start after that stupid piece of shrapnel hit her and it only seemed to get worse after Mr Foley's accident.

Of course she knew how close that small shard of painfully hot and pointy metal had come to puncturing her femoral artery but she had really hoped that Danny hadn't realised it, his tendency to obsess over her safety could verge on smothering at times, not that she didn't enjoy the attention from her best friend/love of her admittedly short life. But something about the way he was acting after that made her think that he most certainly had noticed (of _course_ he wouldn't be clueless about something like the position of major blood vessels in the human body! Just about his best friend desperately crushing on him!).

She just marked it down as a bad week for him (he had those a lot), or at least she did until she helped him out with another of his fights with Skulker. He wasn't fighting like the Danny she knew; gone were the witty remarks and biting retorts that normally featured as a sound track to his more routine fights, Skulker's usual array of insults were only met with stony silence. The nonchalance he normally exuded in these fights was also gone, replaced with dull, unfeeling apathy. He was being careless, leaving himself open to attacks that Skulker gladly took, but Danny just took the hits and continued fighting. By the end of it, he was ragged and bloody, with a particularly deep and painful gash running diagonally across his chest already leaking a worrying amount of ectoplasm. And when the fight was over she could see in his eyes that he was tired beyond any human limit.

Sam desperately wanted to ask what was wrong but he just picked up the Thermos and flew back to his home to deposit the rather beaten ghost back in the Ghost Zone, leaving Sam alone with her thoughts and her fear for her best friend's health.

* * *

Danny was not in a good way at the moment.

He was distracted by the sudden realisation of just how fragile the lives of his friends were and how devastating their loss would be to him (and by extension, the world).

This brought on the Nightmares; reliving the explosion of the Nasty Burger, visions of the wasteland future Dan, and by extension himself, had created and worst of all, seeing himself in Dan's place, revelling in the destruction he could create with the power locked inside him. He would wake up from those sweating profusely and invariably in his Phantom form. After a couple of nights of this he just gave up on sleep, patrolling the streets all night.

This complete lack of sleep meant that he was sustaining more and more injuries after every fight and his body just wasn't healing them as quickly as it normally did and so they were starting to pile up. This only distracted him more and made him long for sleep, which of course only exacerbated the problem. It was a truly vicious cycle.

That last fight with Skulker had taken a lot out of him and he really wasn't sure how much left he had to give. He wasn't even feeling most of his injuries anymore; they had long since faded into background noise along with his body's cries for rest.

What he needed was a way to deal with Dan, once and for all, a way to ensure _He_ could never happen, that the _future_ he had seen could never happen. And after a couple of days thinking over this problem, the solution hit him. And the cold, logical basis for it scared him almost as much as Dan did.

"_You don't get it do you? _I_'m still here, I still exist, which means _you_ still turn into _me_!"_

All of this time he had been so focused on stopping Dan that he hadn't noticed the most effective solution to the problem. He had been so desperate to separate himself from Dan that he had begun to view him as a separate entity entirely, all of his concern being on stopping _Dan_, the symptom, rather than deal with the cause.

Dan was right, _Danny_ turned in to _Dan_. As such, there was only one way to truly stop Dan from ever existing, one way to truly protect the world and everyone he cared about. Because the truth of the matter was that he wasn't fighting Dan, he was fighting himself, an internal struggle that he couldn't be certain he would prevail in. In hindsight, perhaps he had already subconsciously come to that conclusion; it would certainly explain why he was all but allowing the ghosts he fought to attack him with impunity.

Only one course of action remained, the same course of action the Observants had originally charged Clockwork with; to permanently remove the threat of Dan Phantom, Danny Fenton/Phantom had to die.

* * *

Someone needed to talk to Danny. This was more than an off week for him; Sam couldn't place exactly why but she knew something was terribly wrong with him and that this time it stemmed from his mind.

Normally the psych stuff would be Jazz's job but since she was snowed under with college assignments, Sam knew ensuring Danny's continued mental wellbeing fell to her. As such, she stood up from the spot on the grass where she had sat in contemplation for the past hour, dusted herself off, and began the short walk to his house. He would talk to her one way or the other.

* * *

**[AN:**

**Well there's the first chapter of a two or maybe three part story. Please tell me what you think, particularly if I got anything wrong in my characterisation; any and all feedback is appreciated.**

**Thanks for taking the time to read!**

**/AN]**


	2. Acceptance

**Disclaimer: This story was inspired by three songs, ****_Fight Inside_**** by Red and ****_The Last Night_**** and _Yours to Hold, _both by Skillet****. I own neither of these two songs or ****_Danny Phantom _****(owned by Nickelodeon, I believe), and I make no claim to them in any way.**

**Any similarity to other fanfics inspired by the same/similar songs is completely unintentional and if you feel I have infringed on your own writing, please alert me immediately and I will edit/remove the story as appropriate.**

**[AN: **

**Here's the second chapter, there will be at least one more chapter, but it won't go beyond 5 chapters.**

**Thank you very much to those who reviewed, favourite'd and followed.**

**/AN]**

Sam didn't even have to knock before Maddie called out to tell her that Danny was up in his room. Her combat boots clomped loudly as she bounded up the stairs two at a time, steeling herself to make the usually recalcitrant halfa talk to her about what was going on in his head, but nothing could have prepared her for the sight she found as she entered his room.

He was sitting hunched over on the side of his bed, staring blankly at a reflection of himself in a nearby mirror, his body a horrifying patchwork of bruises, gashes, burns and infected tissue. Most notably, that gash across his chest that she had noticed earlier had was now glaringly obvious and still leaking crimson blood over the congealed mass of  
ragged flesh that dominated his torso.

Normally his few significant scars and fresh wounds were artfully concealed beneath long, baggy items of clothing. But sitting on his bed, shirt off and with no evidence of even the most rudimentary attempt at first aid anywhere on his mutilated body, the true degree of his concealment was revealed to her.

Sam couldn't believe her eyes; even after his fight with Pariah Dark he hadn't looked this bad. Skulker had been the most powerful ghost he had had to fight this week and normally Danny could beat him with little more than a couple of scratches and an occasional bruise for his trouble (ever since his fight with Dan and subsequent discovery of the Ghostly Wail, his strength had grown exponentially; to the point where even Vlad was becoming much more cautious when engaging the younger halfa).

"Oh my God! Danny…what...?" Sam choked out, hand over her mouth in shock as the full severity of her crush/best friend's situation fully sunk in.

As if only just noticing her presence, Danny's head shot up to meet her gaze before hastily standing up.

"Can't talk, have to go on patrol. I'll see you at school tomorrow" he said over his shoulder as he turned towards the far wall and futilely attempted to trigger his transformation, "…maybe." He added the last part under his breath but Sam still heard it and it spurred her into action.

"You aren't in any condition to be _walking_, let alone fighting ghosts! What are you thinking?!" She hissed at the clearly injured teen.

"I have to do this Sam, the Town needs me to protect it." He responded through gritted teeth as he tried to summon the energy and focus to trigger his transformation.

"Look at yourself Danny! You're so badly hurt you can't even control your ghost form. You can't protect the town if you're dead!" Sam nearly shouted, almost forgetting about the need to keep her voice down due to his parent's proximity.

"That's the _only_ way I can protect it." He said quietly as he stared sadly out the window, not even bothering to try and transform anymore.

That stopped Sam cold. She had thought this was just another case of Danny pushing himself too hard because of his damn Hero Complex again, but this was something else all together more serious. She knew Danny had to deal with more than any person should, what with school, bullying, defending the town from ghost attacks, avoiding various human ghost hunters, his parent included, and balancing the two separate lives he led, but he had always been so irrepressible and so ready to give everything he could that the concept of him falling into self-hate and despair had never occurred to her.

Had she really been such a terrible friend to him that she hadn't noticed such a fundamental and significant shift in his behaviour?

"What-What do you mean, Danny?" was all she managed to get out as she stood frozen on the spot by the thoughts racing around her head.

"The Observants were right, Clockwork was wrong. The only way to make sure that Dan never happens is for me to die."

Sam couldn't respond to that. He was seriously saying that he thought it would be best if he were to-to… die. And knowing him, he would fight until his own exertion killed him or Skulker finally had a new pelt for his wall.

Danny continued, oblivious to Sam's lack of response.

"I became Dan because I lost everyone I cared about and now I realise just how fragile your lives actually are. And think about what would happen to the number of Ghost attacks if I wasn't here. I thought I was protecting the town, but all I'm doing is making it a target for my enemies; Skulker and Walker would never have a reason to come back here if it weren't for me and most of the others Valerie can take care of by now. Besides, who would actually care if I were to disappear tomorrow? Sure, Dash might miss his favourite punching bag and Mom and Dad might wonder about it for bit, but as soon as they realised Phantom was gone too, they would immediately forget about me; heck, the whole town would probably declare a Public Holiday in celebration. And I'm sure Mr Lancer would be glad he didn't have to keep giving me detention for showing up late to class or grading my half-finished homework, plus your parents would be thrilled learn that their daughter wasn't hanging out with a Fenton anymore. It's a win-win situation for everyone." Danny continued, false enthusiasm dripping from every word and mixing with the underlying tone of loathing and fear in a way that sent a chill up Sam's spine.

Danny had always had a penchant for sarcasm, but the way he was describing his own self-worth now… once again Sam was struck silent by the overwhelming mix of emotions flooding through her.

Part of her wanted to storm out of the room, to yell and scream at him that _she _cared and that Tucker and Jazz and so many others cared about him and that he had no right to accuse them of otherwise. But Danny knew that, and Sam knew that Danny knew that, it was just buried beneath the weight of his own fear, stress and personal hell that was his life. So she couldn't hate him, because this wasn't Danny, this was a hollow shell of her best friend. And she hadn't noticed it until it was almost too late.

So she did the one thing she never thought she would do; she cried.

It wasn't a spectacular display of bawling waterworks like you might see on TV; her eyes watered slightly and a couple of thin, glistening streaks ran down to her chin leaving a faint trail of dark mascara in their wake.

That was it.

But the meaning was huge; Samantha Manson, fiercely independent Gothic aficionado, was crying.

It was a reaction brought on by sheer emotional overload and the need to release it in some way other than righteous fury. It was a response to the pure anguish in the eyes of her oldest and closest friend and the fact that she hadn't been there to help him.

"I'm sorry Danny, I am so, so sorry…" She whispered, voice cracking ever so slightly as she said it, eyes still glistening with yet-to-be-shed tears.

**[AN:**

**And there's the second chapter. The next chapter will be the resolution of the matter unless a reason to extend it strikes me before I finish it. I may also include an epilogue chapter, depending on what I can come up with/you want to see.**

**As before, please tell me what you think, particularly if I got anything wrong in my characterisation; any and all feedback is deeply appreciated.**

**Once again, thanks for taking the time to read!**

**/AN]**


	3. Perspective

**Disclaimer: This story was inspired by three songs, ****_Fight Inside_**** by Red and ****_The Last Night_**** and _Yours to Hold, _both by Skillet****. I own neither of these two songs or ****_Danny Phantom _****(owned by Nickelodeon, I believe), and I make no claim to them in any way.**

**Any similarity to other fanfics inspired by the same/similar songs is completely unintentional and if you feel I have infringed on your own writing, please alert me immediately and I will edit/remove the story as appropriate.**

**[AN: **

**Once more, special thanks to those who reviewed, favourite'd and followed.**

**Without further ado, I present the conclusion of the matter.**

**/AN]**

* * *

Danny had always been protective of his loved ones and it was a trait that had only intensified after he became a halfa and finally gained the ability to effectively protect those people. And so when he saw _Sam_, of all people, crying… everything else became a secondary concern.

"What's wrong Sam? There's nothing for you to be sorry about. You haven't done anything wrong." He tried to soothe her, his supportive hero voice slipping into use without conscious thought as he gingerly approached her.

"Of course I have, Danny! Look at yourself! Did you even hear a word of what you just said!? I'm supposed to be your best friend, I'm supposed to make sure you feel wanted, that you're needed and loved! I'm supposed to be helping you carry your burdens, but they're crushing you!" Her eyes welled with tears as she barely restrained herself from shouting the words, pleading with him to see reason.

"They aren't your burdens to carry Sam; they're mine and I have to bear them myself."

"But you don't have to do it alone! Tucker and Jazz are here for you, _I'm_ here for you! We'll be whatever you need us to be, wherever you need us to be, just let us help you!"

"It's not that easy; Dan… I'm the only one who knows him, who knows what he's capable of. I have to be responsible for him, for me."

"And so your solution is to grind yourself into dust and save the other ghosts the trouble?" Sam spat, fury and indignation reasserting themselves in her eyes as she glared at the broken hero before her. "Did you ever stop to think that maybe Clockwork was right to save you? That you might be the only one capable of stopping Dan? Or what if another ghost like Pariah Dark shows up? You've used your power for so much good so far, what makes you think that that wouldn't continue?"

Danny stayed silent, unable to meet her blazing eyes.

"Danny, look at me." Same demanded and slowly he raised his head and looked his gaze with her amethyst eyes.

"You are _not_ Dan. You are Danny, _my_ Danny, and there's _no one_ I'd trust more to protect this town, no one I'd feel safer with. _No one_."

Danny was still silent, but there was a spark of life returning to his eyes, his body was sitting up just that bit straighter. Sam pressed her advantage and she fervently hoped Danny would forgive her for what she was about to say.

"But right now you're acting like Dan!"

Danny stiffened immediately and jerked away from the hand she had gently placed on his shoulder. The silence that permeated the room as Sam tried to work up the courage to continue, was absolutely deafening.

"You told me that Dan lost everything and then turned to Vlad, sacrificing his humanity to make the pain of his loss go away. And that's exactly what you're doing now. You're willing to sacrifice everything to stop the pain you feel. And I don't blame you."

Danny looked up, surprised at the words. He had been expecting condemnation and fear, not compassion. As far as he was concerned, he should be loathed and despised because of what Dan proved could happen, and he just couldn't understand why Sam was trying so hard to convince him otherwise.

"You've stood strong against everything for so long and put up with more than I can bear to watch. You deserve so much more than I can give you, but I will do everything I can make your pain bearable; just let me!"

He had forgotten that there were still people who cared about him and now Sam was pouring out her soul to remind him of that fact. The only question that remained was if that would be enough.

Both of them were dead quiet after Sam finished her impassioned plea, both realising their sudden proximity and electing to ignore it in favour of sorting through the emotional maelstrom of the last ten minutes.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Danny spoke.

"You've always been there for me Sam. Thanks, for reminding me. Thanks for caring about me."

The realisation hit him like a hammer blow. Of course what he already had was worth fighting for, even if that meant fighting his own demons on a daily basis.

"Always, Danny. Now let me patch you up and you can go back to kicking Skulker's metal ass across town tomorrow." She said with a small smile and an attempt at a mischievous smirk. Clearly it worked because Danny snorted in amusement and then grimaced as that set off half the injuries across his torso.

Sam immediately located the well concealed back-pack that functioned as Danny's aid station in the dark corner next to his door and set to work, bandaging, binding and disinfecting his myriad injuries. It made her physically sick to see him like this but she pressed on because he needed her to be strong and the town needed him to get better; Valerie and the Fenton's were good (well, decent maybe) but they were no Danny Phantom, and let's not even mention the Guys in White. The truth was, he was going to need at least a couple of days to fully heal, even with his ectoplasmicly enhanced healing capabilities; good thing it was a Friday today then.

Half an hour later, Danny was swathed in bandages, a liberal burst of air freshener had been sprayed to mask the permeating smell of hospital-grade disinfectant and Sam had done all she could for the battered halfa.

"Is there anything else you need Danny?" Sam asked as she packed away the last of the aid supplies and updated the 'Need to Buy' List that Jazz kept track of.

"Um, I- uh… no." He stammered out before sighing dejectedly, "It's nothing, just go home and get some rest."

Sam was not amused. She crossed her arms and glared at the nervous teen as he slowly pulled on a long sleeved shirt to hide the bandages from prying eyes.

"Danny, didn't we just cover this? I want to help and you clearly need it. Whatever it is, just ask."

Danny looked seriously unsure about whatever he was about to ask but also slightly…hopeful? And that piqued Sam's interest even more.

"I… would you stay here tonight? I just- The Nightmares keep me awake and I thought that, maybe, if you were here that, maybe, I would… sleep… better…" He finished awkwardly, unable to meet her gaze as he rubbed the back of his neck anxiously.

"Oh… um, what about Tucker? Should I ask him to come over to?" Sam asked carefully, hoping for a no but expecting yes.

"No, we don't need to bother him." Danny said as casually as he could. He didn't add that he really wanted _just_ Sam to be here tonight, not because he was going to try something or anything like that, but because there was a certain… peace that he always felt when he was with her. And Tucker, though well meaning, could sometimes shatter that peace.

"In that case, then sure, I'd love to," She said, surprised but more than a little excited at the prospect. Then she realised how that might of sounded to him and rushed to cover it up, "Uh, that is if you think that would help, of course… give me five minutes, I'll go out the font and explain to your parents that you aren't feeling well and probably shouldn't be woken up tomorrow and then I'll come around the back."

True to her word, Sam returned by climbing through Danny's window five minutes later.

"What about your parents?" Danny asked as she locked his door to avoid the need to explain a whole set of really awkward and difficult questions should either of his parents walk in unexpectedly to check on him during the night.

"I told them I was sleeping over at Tuck's and then catching a movie during the day. I filled Tucker in as well so he can vouch for me if necessary." Sam said with a grin.

Without further ado, she dragged her usual set of mattresses and blankets that all three had stored in each other's rooms for when they inevitably stayed over at the other's house and set them up on the floor next to Danny's bed. They chatted about random things like they normally did for a couple more minutes before Danny's complete lack of sleep for the past couple of days caught up to him and he instantly fell into a fitful sleep.

Sam herself was drained emotionally and ready for a good night's rest, but when she saw Danny moaning and twitching violently in his sleep she knew she had to do something.

So she did.

She carefully got up and slid into bed next to the shaking boy, then wrapped her arms around him in a tight embrace and drew her damaged best friend close to her. Sure enough, Danny began to still, his thrashing stopped and soon his breathing and heart-rate returned to normal levels.

Still, Sam held him close, not daring to loosen her grip on him lest he fall back into nightmares once again.

"I'll always be there for you, Danny, whenever you need me." She whispered to the sleeping halfa before finally succumbing to sleep herself.

Both Danny and Sam slept better that night than they had in years.

* * *

Clockwork mulled over the trials he had effectively subjected Danny to. He regretted their necessity, but they truly _were_ a necessity.

Danny needed to fully understand what his power could do if he abused it, and he needed to understand the corruption that the lure of power creates in those who seek it. That had been the point of the Dan incident; and while it would scar the child for the rest of his days, it was a scar he needed to receive and one that he could never afford to forget.

Danny would face many more challenges and trials in his life, however time flowed, but he smiled in satisfaction that his charge had learnt the key to succeeding in the face of these trials. He now fully understood that he had complete support from his friends and more importantly, he knew how to accept that support, even in the face of the most impossible and personal challenges.

Yes, while Clockwork resented the need for subjecting Danny to so much more pain and suffering, he knew it was for the best in the end.

**[AN:**

**And that's the main story folks! Thanks for sticking around to read it.**

**I am considering an epilogue piece, so if there are any loose ends you feel I didn't tie up satisfactorily, tell me and I may be able to turn it into a chapter.**

**As before, please tell me what you think, particularly if I got anything wrong in my characterisation, I wanted it to feel as though it's something that could have happened in a slightly darker version of the cannon and not a complete AU.**

**Once again, thanks for taking the time to read!**

**/AN]**


	4. The Conclusion of the Matter

**Disclaimer: This story was inspired by three songs, ****_Fight Inside_**** by Red and ****_The Last Night_**** and _Yours to Hold, _both by Skillet****. I own neither of these two songs or ****_Danny Phantom _****(owned by Nickelodeon, I believe), and I make no claim to them in any way.**

**Any similarity to other fanfics inspired by the same/similar songs is completely unintentional and if you feel I have infringed on your own writing, please alert me immediately and I will edit/remove the story as appropriate.**

**[AN: **

**Well, I decided that this story needed some sort of epilogue to tie up everything, so I hope this satisfies.**

**I have also gone back and edited the earlier chapters, mainly grammar and spelling mistakes and some minor changes to sentence structure.**

**Random side-note; at the time of publishing this chapter, this is both my longest, both in terms of words and chapters, and most reviewed story, while also having the least favourites.**

**/AN]**

* * *

Mr Lancer sat at his desk, ruminating on the strange changes in some of his students over the past two weeks.

He had been dumbfounded when Daniel Fenton had his first week without detention since his Freshman year, not once showing up late or skipping out of class since he returned from a few days of illness. Equally strangely was that Ms Gray, normally an excellent student, began turning up late or skipping class entirely, not to mention her almost complete lack of submitted homework; very unlike her normal, hard-working nature. It was almost as though the two students had switched roles.

Daniel had also become far more engaged in class, no longer slipping in and out of consciousness as the lesson went on. And his homework! He never would have imagined he was capable of such eloquent and intelligent work, but in hindsight there were hints of it is his previously rushed and incomplete work that he was occasionally given to grade. In fact, Mr Lancer was put in mind of his older sister, Jasmine, who he had seen coming to pick him up once or twice after school; perhaps she was having a positive influence on him now.

This bizarre shift in Mr Fenton and Ms Gray's attitudes to school work lasted little more than a week before returning to something approximating normalcy. Daniel was back to showing up late to class, but not as regularly as before and his homework was occasionally incomplete or missing entirely but that was the exception rather than the rule now. And Ms Gray had become more distracted and tired recently, even though she was now participating like before.

He had all but given up on trying to determine this sudden change and equally sudden reversion; at least, he had until he could observe them some more. Maybe time would reveal the reasons; until then he would stick to helping them as best he could, with the knowledge he could provide to them.

An interesting side observation he had made, though, was that Mr Fenton and Ms Manson seemed to be closer than ever, which would have been a remarkable feat in-and-of itself, but not only was their friendship closer, there were also mutual hints at something decidedly non-platonic between them now; and it wasn't just unintentional proximity or any of the many things that had lead to the well deserved title of 'Love-Birds'. No, this was definitely something else.

Mr Lancer couldn't help but wonder if this had something to do with Daniel's sudden turn-around in class.

If only he knew.

* * *

It had been two weeks since that fateful night and Danny was much more like his old self; not quite the same, but close.

Sam and Tucker had alternated in taking care of him for the first week, either sleeping over at his house or inviting him over to theirs and they never let him out of their sight during school. Sam had also enforced a 'No Ghost fighting- except in an emergency' rule, insisting that Danny needed to recover and heal before he could start battling the numerous ghostly invaders of the town again. The exception would have been if a truly powerful ghost like Vlad or The Fright Knight showed up, but to the relief of all, none did.

Consequently, Danny Phantom wasn't seen for over a week and the Red Huntress was discovering just how many ghosts actually attack Amity Park on a regular basis; Valerie was looking rather ragged by the time Danny finally convinced Sam that he was healed enough to go back to his 'Day Job'. Still, Danny had agreed to take it easy, at least for the next month; one positive side effect of this was that his academic results had risen sharply during his brief 'holiday'.

Another benefit was that he had time to train and master his ever-growing power. He had been hesitant to try and tap into this power, but once again Sam had convinced him that learning how to control it now was better than having it burst out during a fight when he couldn't control it. As a result, he was now stronger than ever and most of his fights were becoming clinical affairs rather than the frantic brawls they had been when he first acquired his ghost powers; and while Danny might not have noticed it, Sam, Tucker and Jazz had all taken note of how surgical he had become as he gained more and more experience; none of them were entirely sure if that was a good thing or not.

Regardless, Danny was in a much better state, both physically and mentally and the trio were currently hanging out at the Nasty Burger as they had so many times before.

"Ugh, I _still_ can't understand how you guys can eat that stuff." Sam groaned in reference to the (allegedly) beef patties in the burgers both boys were eating.

"And _I_ still can't understand how you can eat vegetables." Tucker shivered in revulsion as he spoke the name of his most hated food group.

Danny automatically began to tune out the inevitable argument that he had heard more times than he could count. Instead, he focused on Sam.

Thinking back, Danny really had no idea what might have happened to him if she hadn't cared enough to come and speak to him that night and been stubborn enough to get through to him. After that night things had been… different between them; not bad just… different. Waking up to find his best friend and secret object of his affection in his bed with her arms wrapped around him may have contributed to that somewhat. Still, there was something more affectionate about her actions towards him now and he wasn't sure if it was new or if he had just never noticed it before but it gave him hope.

Slipping further into his thoughts, Danny couldn't help but marvel at how much she had done for him over the course of their friendship. He couldn't imagine his life without her, in the past or the future. And there was what she said that night, and the way she had said it; he couldn't help but think that maybe she might share his feelings to some degree.

* * *

Little did Danny know, he had been staring at Sam with a dreamy expression for nearly three minutes before she noticed it, much to Tucker's amusement. It had worried her at first, but she quickly noticed the tell-tale signs that he was just deep in thought and she found herself studying his relaxed expression, one that was all too rare for her liking. He might never know it, but she would do anything for him, if he asked it. Whether it was eating meat or wearing pink, she would do it, because she trusted him. And she was willing to give so much more than he would ever ask. Still, she couldn't help but wonder if the shy glances and comforting touches she had been noticing over the last couple of weeks might be something more than the actions of a close friend who was just expressing their thanks…

* * *

Unbeknownst to either of them, Tucker had reclined in his booth and polished of Danny's unfinished meal (he had finished his own long ago). Both of his friends had been slipping into these unintentional romantic moments more and more frequently and they inevitably led to significant levels of blushing and numerous denials of any sort of mutual attraction. In fact, the whole thing had become so predictable, he had begun archiving footage to create a montage to show them when they finally got together (for there was no doubt in Tucker's, or anyone else's, mind that they would eventually get together).

So as usual, he positioned his PDA to record the moment, took a final sip of his drink before clearing his throat and uttering the word that practically functioned as a command to begin the show.

*cough* "Lovebirds" *cough*

But this time, the result was far different from usual as his two friends blinked out of their mutual stupor.

"You know what Tucker? I think you might be right."

* * *

**[AN:**

**And that's it folks; thanks for taking the time to skim through this story and come back over multiple chapters. I hope you found it worth your time.**

** Please tell me what you think; as usual, any and all feedback is appreciated.**

**Thanks for taking the time to read!**

**/AN]**


End file.
